A group of men boarded the women-only car of the Chiyoda Line subway in Tokyo during the morning commute on Feb. 16 as a form of protest, saying that excluding men was a form of discrimination. Such protests are not unusual, but the media ...

Those with the conviction that members of Japan's Imperial family have negligible impact on the lives of their subjects should bear in mind that for a tiny few, it can literally be a matter of life or death.
More specifically, on festive occasions such as ...

Every piece of content on the internet can be divisive these days, even the innocuous stuff. This truism was on full display over the past week and a half thanks to a now-removed YouTube video set in a Tokyo sushi restaurant, which charmed many ...

The government does not plan to invite female members of the Imperial Family to the Kenji to Shokei no Gi, one of the core ceremonies that will be used to mark Crown Prince Naruhito’s accession on May 1 next year.

U.S. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke came under fire this week for what critics said was a "flippant" and "juvenile" use of a Japanese greeting when responding to a question from a congresswoman of Japanese descent during a House committee hearing.
Rep. Colleen Hanabusa, of Hawaii, ...

Attorney General Jeff Sessions said Friday that he had fired former FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe, a regular target of President Donald Trump's anger and criticism, just two days before his scheduled retirement date. McCabe immediately decried the move and suggested it was part ...

China's rubber-stamp parliament unanimously handed President Xi Jinping a second term Saturday and elevated his right-hand man to the vice presidency, giving him a strong ally to consolidate power and handle U.S. trade threats.
Xi's reappointment by the Communist Party-controlled legislature was a foregone conclusion, ...

"A man once thoroughly endued with these three qualities of lying, impudence, and ingratitude will, I believe, scarce want any other titles to preferment and grandeur." — Henry Fielding, from a satirical article on the traits of successful politicians, 1740
Over a year after it ...

U.S. President Donald Trump is considering sweeping tariffs on imports from China, with an announcement possible as early as next week. And that has industry groups and some lawmakers scrambling to prevent the next front in a potential trade war that could reverberate across ...

The Board of Audit has said it will re-examine the favoritism scandal centering around school operator Moritomo Gakuen, following the revelation of alterations to related documents by the Finance Ministry.
The board will carry out a fresh investigation based on discussions in the Diet, President ...

The humble cabbage is the third most consumed vegetable in Japan according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, following daikon radishes and onions. It's used in everything from stir-fries and gyōza dumplings to pickles and more and, despite the high prices for ...

Among the brash drinking holes and boisterous old-school izakaya taverns clustered in the narrow alleys that surround Kanda Station, The Blind Donkey is an unexpected, understated anomaly.
It has no flashing lights announcing its presence, or any other identifying signs, for that matter. The clear ...

Shibuya's Kamiyamacho district continues to bubble up with worthy new dining venues. One of the most intriguing new arrivals on its increasingly popular shopping street — the long, straight artery connecting Tokyu Department Store with Yoyogi-Koen — is OnJapan Cafe&.
The mission statement at this ...

For the rest of the world all roads might lead to Rome, but in Japan all roads lead to Nihonbashi. Just as the Milliarium Aureum (Golden Milestone) delineated the point from which all distances were measured in the Roman Empire, there is a monument ...

Ministop often gets overlooked when discussing convenience store chains in Japan. Due to the sheer number of outlets found across the country, the big three — Lawson, Seven-Eleven and Family Mart — tend to hog the attention (including from this column, which last sampled ...

St. Patrick's Day is the time of year when many raise a glass in their local "authentic Irish" pub to Ireland's literary greats, from master satirist Jonathan Swift (1667-1745) to poet Seamus Heaney (1939-2013). In Japan too, the dynamic interaction of Ireland and Japan's ...

Iris Chang's groundbreaking work, "The Rape of Nanking" is widely credited with publicizing the World War II atrocity that many in Japan continue to deny or belittle as exaggeration. Graphically observant to multiple atrocities, it is not a book for the faint-hearted. Despite ...

The fifth issue of the Tokyo Poetry Journal (ToPoJo) shows it has the scope of ambition and the depth of talent to become a lasting landmark in Japan's English-language poetry scene. This issue focuses on the way in which U.S. beat poets such as ...

The defending champion Tochigi Brex didn't have the same swagger and chemistry when the season began.
But they have made steady progress over the past few months, with veteran leader Jeff Gibbs returning to a starring role after an Achilles injury in the title game ...

Marcel Hirscher took the season closing giant slalom on Saturday to equal the record of 13 wins in a single campaign.
The 29-year-old Austrian entered a select club containing only two others members as he matched the number of wins achieved by skiing legends Ingemar ...

Yokozuna Kakuryu survived a scare to remain unbeaten and tied for the lead on Saturday, the seventh day of the Spring Grand Sumo Tournament.
After a string of comprehensive wins, the Mongolian was forced back to the straw after a strong initial slapping barrage by ...

Hideki Matsuyama carded an even-par 72 in the second round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational on Friday, sliding down the leaderboard into a tie for 31st, nine strokes behind the leaders.
Bryson DeChambeau of the United States shot a 6-under-par 66, the day's equal-best round, ...

Naomi Osaka booked her place in the BNP Paribas Open final in emphatic fashion Friday night, powering past world No. 1 Simona Halep 6-3, 6-0 in the semis.
The hard-hitting 20-year-old showed supreme confidence, wrapping up the match in 64 minutes and avenging her loss ...

Yoshihiro Nitta won gold in the standing cross-country 10-km classical skiing on Saturday at the Winter Paralympics.
Nitta crossed the finish line at Alpensia Biathlon Centre in a disability-factored time of 24 minutes, 6.8 seconds. Grygorii Vovchynskyi of Ukraine finished 8.7 seconds behind Nitta for ...

Ed Charles, the third baseman known as "The Glider" who helped lead the Miracle Mets to the 1969 World Series title with his veteran guidance and poetry, has died. He was 84.
Charles died Thursday in New York, the J. Foster Phillips Funeral Home said.
Born ...